You Know I Can't Stay Long
Claire was walking down the stairs when she heard Chris talking in the kitchen.
"She was screaming in her sleep last night, and it took me five or so minutes to get her to wake up. She won't even tell me what the dreams are about. Jill, I'm seriously worried about her." Claire stood in the middle of the staircase, wondering whether or not she should go down the rest of the way.
"I understand that what happened was incredibly traumatic, I've been in that situation, Jill. Hell, you've been in that situation! Twice! But whatever happened with Claire has sent her off the deep end, and she won't take the life ring I'm throwing her! I am worried as hell." Another pause as he listened, Claire guessed he was on the phone.
"Damnit, I know that! Don't you think I know that?!" Another pause.
"I've tried. She won't go to a doctor, she won't go to a shrink, she won't talk to me, she won't talk to you. Barry's not even tried because she wouldn't even talk to Leon, who went through the first nightmare along with her!" Claire closed her eyes and swallowed. Her stomach felt queasy.
"I thought so too. She seemed to be doing better. It's been a couple of weeks, I figured she'd at least be willing to tell someone about what happened by now. She even looked willing to open up yesterday, but I had to leave. Didn't you try asking her about it during the two of you's outing?" Pause.
"You didn't want to ruin it? Aw man, Jill." Claire turned around and walked back upstairs into her bedroom. She didn't want to hear anymore. It was making her sick. She sat on the edge of her bed and fiddled with a hole in the bedspread.
"I love you, Claire." That had been the last thing he'd said before he'd died. And she hadn't even taken the body with her. And now that bastard Wesker had it! Claire closed her eyes and balled her fists angrily. She stayed that way for ten minutes until she heard Chris on the stairs. She climbed back into bed and rolled over into her sleeping position.
"Hey, Claire, wakey wakey! It's almost eleven. C'mon, don't let the pills keep you asleep." He walked over to her bed and pulled the covers off of her. Claire groaned and tried to pull them back over herself, thanking god that he was doing his normal routine. She finally 'gave up' and sat up. Chris grinned at her.
"Hey, good morning sunshine! Coffee's ready and I made waffles!" Claire blinked up at him, then nodded, yawning widely. Chris returned the nod and went back downstairs, humming to himself. Claire smiled with relief. He hadn't suspected anything. The smell of bacon frying reached her nose and her stomach rumbled. Claire sighed at it and got out of bed again, going all the way downstairs this time.
"Aw, man, couldn't you at least get dressed first?" Chris complained. Claire stuck her tongue out at him and sat down at her place at the table. Chris set a waffle down in front of her and went back to frying the bacon.
"You know what? I think it's a good thing you lived on your own for a while. It taught you how to cook." She commented between bites of waffle. Chris looked over, a mock-offended expression on his face.
"You think I couldn't cook before? I am offended! I must defend my honour!" He hit at her with the spatula, laughing maniacally. Claire's face paled slightly and he froze, mid swat.
"Claire?" He asked worriedly, putting the spatula down. Claire shook her head quickly and picked up her fork.
"It's nothing." She said as calmly as she could. Chris opened his mouth, then shut it again, picked up the spatula, and went back to the bacon. Claire finished her waffle and ate a couple pieces of bacon, then rinsed her dishes.
"Hey, Chris?" She asked casually.
"Yeah?" He asked, looking up from his own waffle.
"I'm going to the park, I need the fresh air." He nodded.
"Good. It could do you good. Want me to come with you?"
"Nah, I need to be alone for a couple hours."
"Claire-"
"I'll be fine." She walked upstairs and got dressed in jeans and a T-shirt, nothing special. She pulled her boots on, put her hair in it's customary pony-tail, and left the house, a worried Chris standing in the doorway and watching her leave.
The park was empty as Claire wandered through it, brooding. The dream had been reoccurring every night she didn't take the sleeping pills. It was causing huge problems for her psyche. The whole incident was still so painful, and she wasn't sure exactly why. It wasn't because it was the first time she'd lost someone. She had experienced that pain before, when her parents had died. No, this ache was that of loss, but it hurt differently. She sat on a bench and watched the leaves sway on the trees. It was nearing the last week of September, which meant that soon the green leaves would be turning red, yellow, and orange, dropping off the trees and dying. But for now, they were still green, and Claire stared at the colour sadly.
"Oh Steve…" She whispered, remembering the colour of the monster he had become's skin. It wasn't the exact shade, but it was close. Too close for her to deal with. She put her head in her hands and closed her eyes, trying to block off the memories. They hurt so much.
"Steve…" She whimpered, a sob building in her throat.
"Claire?" Her head jerked up. No one was there. She looked behind her. No one. And the voice. It had sounded like… No, she was just hearing things.
"Great, just what I needed." She sighed. She couldn't stay out for too long, Chris would get worried. The conversation between him and Jill came back to her and she let out a frustrated noise. He could at least have the conversations somewhere where it wasn't likely that she'd come into the middle of it. Idiot.
"Did you see that?" Ada asked, an interested tone in her voice. Wesker nodded.
"Yes, I did. Odd. His facial expression, the sudden change… I wonder what occurred." He looked over at the scientist at the computer.
"Anything on the charts?" He asked the older man. He shook his head and went back to his work. Wesker turned back to Steven and examined the new expression on his face with interest. Where it had been the very image of a sleeping teenage boy only a minute before, it now held an expression of deep concern and confusion. As he watched the boy, Steven's mouth opened and mouthed a word. With the help of Progenitor, Wesker read the lips easily.
"Claire." A smirk spread across his face as he recalled the young Redfield girl, and how precious Steven Burnside had been to her.
It was when the clock struck three that Chris started to worry. He had no idea where Claire was. She hadn't come back since she'd left around eleven that morning. She had said she needed to be alone for a couple of hours, and she hadn't contacted him at all. He fiddled with the phone cord, wondering whether or not he should call Jill. He sincerely doubted that Claire would have gone over to her place without telling him, but… He picked up the phone and dialed. After a couple of rings, Jill picked up.
"Hello?" She asked warily.
"Hey, Jill, it's me, Chris. Sorry to call you, but, have you seen Claire? She left around eleven this morning and I haven't seen her since…"
"Oh, Chris! Yeah, I saw Claire an hour or so ago. She walked past the house looking pale, so I went out and talked to her, saw if she was all right. She said she was, and I could tell I wasn't going to get any other response, so I let her go." Chris muttered a curse under his breath.
"Damnit. Why didn't she tell me she was going to wander the town? She said she needed a couple of hours to herself, but this is ridiculous."
"Chris, she's nineteen. She's been through Hell. She needs her privacy." Jill reprimanded him. Chris sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose between his forefinger and thumb.
"I know that. I just… I worry." He admitted, feeling like a stupid, over-protective, older brother. Jill made a sympathetic noise, then gave off an exclamation that made him nearly drop the phone.
"Jill?! What's going on?!"
"I just saw her, give me a second!" She replied, and there was a noise that sounded suspiciously like the handset being dropped. Chris sighed and waited.
She really hadn't wanted Jill to come running when she walked past her house the first time. Had she known another way to where she wanted to go, Claire would've gone that way, instead of pass by the house a second time. Just as she had earlier, Jill came running out.
"Claire! Claire, wait!" She shouted. Claire closed her eyes momentarily in exasperation and turned to face Jill, an annoyed expression on her face.
"Yes, Jill, what is it? I'm trying to get somewhere, so can we make this quick?" She asked, trying to be polite. Jill skidded to a stop and caught her breath.
"Your brother's on my phone, looking for you. I think you should talk to him before continuing on your way." She said, running a hand through her hair, a habit that Claire suspected she had picked up from Chris.
"Fine, I'll talk to him for a little bit. But I really am busy." She sighed and followed Jill in to have a quick conversation with her brother.
